allison



(No Model.)

J. M. ALLISON. ILLUMINATED ADVERTISING SIGN FOR CARS.

No. 541,031. Patented June 11,1895.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES M.-ALLISON, OF INDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA.

ILLUMINATED ADVERTISING-SIGN FOR CARS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent NO. 541,031, da.ted J' une 11, 1895.

Application led February 23, 1895. Serial No.539,123. (No model.) I

To all whom it may concern: y

vBe it known that I, .TAMEs MONTGOMERY ALLIsON, a citizen of the United States, residing at Indianapolis, in the county of Marion and State of Indiana, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Illuminated Advertising-Signs for Cars; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description ot the invention, such as will enable oth ers skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and toV the letters of reference marked thereon, whic form a part of this specication.

n This invention relates to an improvement in illuminated advertising signs for cars, and

v similar purposes.

The object of my invention is to provide an illuminated sign to be placed in a convenient place in front of the car, preferably placed on the platform hood immediately over the motormans head so as to be easily read from the streets.

The-sign is to designate the route in which the car is going, and an advertisement can be also placed above or below the car route. Said letters are painted on canvas or other transparent material, and the light is reflected on the canvas from the rear. The canvas practically contains only two routes one designating the terminus on the outgoing tripLand on the return the mortorman pulls the cord or cable which is placed at a convenient place near his post, and the canvas is automatically rolled up by means of a spring roller, until the new sign designating the terminus on the incoming trip is shown, and vice versa. The current to operate the lights in the box containing the reflectors, is taken from the circuit in the car. I prefer to illuminate the sign with an electric light, but lamps can be used as well.

The invention still further consists in certain novel details of constructiomcombination and arrangements of partsas will be hereinafter more fully described and pointed out in the claim.

I have aimed to make my invention of few parts and of such simple construction as to make it durable in use, and economical to manufacture.

Referring to the drawings, Figure 1 shows ent, is-

a street-car with the sign attached on the hood Fig. 2 shows a front view of the sign attached to a car. of the sign.

In the drawings, A designates the box that contains the lights and the reflectors B, which are mounted on the slide E, which is held in place by means of grooves. Said slide is pref-l erably made to enter the box from the end, but can be made to ente-r from the rear.

C is the glass in front of the box.

K is the slotted brackets which are permanently securedto the hood on the car.

J is the slotted bracket which is secured to the sides of the boX on each end and is adapted to adjust the sign at any angle desired, by means of a thumb screw passing through both of said brackets. The box is hinged at the back, near the bottom to the car hood, by means of the hinge.

D is a spring roller placed preferably in front near the top of the boX, to which the canvas I, containing the sign is attached. Said canvas passes down and around the roller F, then under the reflector slide, and around the roller Gr, then upward and over the pulley H, and is then attached to the cord or cable L, which passes down through the hood and over a pulley to a point near the motorman for convenience in operating. The spring roller Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view u is actuated by simply pulling the cord quickly. y

The roller las at present shown in Fig. .3, is unwound, and the sign is reading for the outgoing trip, and on the incoming trip the roller is wound up until that part of the canvas, which is under the reflector, on which is painted the new terminus sign :reaches the front of the glass, s6 as it can be read from the outside.

The canvas can contain several signs read ing differently, by simply extending the canvas, until it reaches the spring roller and can be connected to the motormans cord from the top.

out in the least departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patwith a street car, the box In' combination IOO adjustably mounted at the front thereof, the light and reflector' mounted on a slidein said box, the spring roller at the front upper edge of the box, the screen bearing the two signs secured to said roller and passing down around a roller at thelower corner, to the rear under the slide and around a second roller, and thence up over a third roller, and the cord for operating said screen to bring one or the other of its signs in front of the light, sub- Io stantially as described.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES M. ALLISON. Vitnesses:

JNO. S. THURMAN, HARRY E. BANKS. 

